Kathleen Lynch (Cork North Central, Labour)
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Question 31: To ask the Minister for Education and Science if he is reviewing the operation and effectiveness of the school completion programme; the number of primary schools that are participating; the number of pupils and the cost per pupil; the cost for 2007; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26064/08]

Ciarán Lynch (Cork South Central, Labour)
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Question 43: To ask the Minister for Education and Science the name, address and role number of the 224 post primary schools and 468 primary schools that participated in the school completion programme in 2007-08; if all of these school will continue to participate in 2008-09; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26071/08]

Seán Haughey (Dublin North Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 31 and 43 together.

The information requested by the Deputy in relation to the 124 School Completion Programme sites, comprising 224 post-primary and 468 primary schools currently participating in the School Completion Programme, has been forwarded to the Deputies. These projects will continue to be funded for the duration of the DEIS Action Plan.

€28.8 million was allocated to the School Completion Programme in 2007 with €31 million allocated for 2008. The programme is funded on a multi-annual basis under the National Development Plan (NDP) and was assisted under the European Social Fund (ESF) up to 2007.

The School Completion Programme encompasses both primary and post-primary levels and focuses on young people between the ages of 4 and 18 years and is designed to deal with issues of both concentrated and regionally dispersed disadvantage. SCP is a key component of DEIS ( Delivering Equality of Opportunities in Schools) the action plan for educational inclusion, which discriminates positively in favour of children and young people who are at risk of early school leaving.

19,059 young people were targeted in-school under the School Completion Programme in 2006/2007. This figure has increased to approx. 36,000 in 2007/2008 with the inclusion of new schools under DEIS.

SCP projects target and focus programme resources in the first instance on the individual young people who are most at risk of early school leaving. Additionally, some strategies may include a wider group (e.g. in the case of sporting and leisure activities) or the entire school population (e.g. where tracking attendance is involved).

The level of funding allocated to projects is dependant on the submission of their annual Retention plan and taking into account the level of disadvantage in the schools involved in each project, the target group selected for intensive supports, the salaries of personnel employed and the overall level of funding available to the programme.